How do you deal with a boss who’s egoistical and tends towards narcissism sometimes? NOTHING! You heard me right…absolutely NOTHING. Stop agreeing with every damn stupid word that spouts up from his/her mouth. Rather learn to rein him/her in and if s/he declines, darling step aside, and let him run into the marketplace amok like a raging bull.
Honestly, your days and nights will be much peaceful, since the only thing you will be bothered about is cleaning a bit of the mess he’s left behind. Majority of the mess he’s caused will be cleaned up by none other than ‘El Hombre/La Mujere’.
As part of the lead management team in the SSA region, I report directly to a boss overseeing SSA. While he’s a creative person, sometimes he lets his ego get the best of him and decides to do stuffs that are not aligned internally. Last year, we had developed a creative campaign for a leading brand. When the first cut was presented to the board, there were some elements that were added (talk about too many cooks spoiling the broth). I had raised my objections and given clear cut reasons on why these suggested elements, should not be added to the overall creative.
I am always pissed off when foreigners think they have a secret insight into local life. Disculpe Senor, you know jack shit. When did you arrive and what has been the duration of your stay in the country/continent to think you have an idea of local idioms, cultures and norms in developing a campaign? Suffice to say, the campaign bombed and talk about a major backlash from TG. Consumers were so loud that our North American office had to step in to resolve the ongoing madness.
I cleaned up social media and the next morning, my boss called me in. By this time, he had been chastened and made to see the error of his way. I knew there was a narcissistic storm on the way when he said “Jan, you realize this campaign was developed with a lot of love for the local custom and culture.”
“You know I have always depended on you to set me straight, when i veer off the beaten path”. In my thoughts, I am thinking “hey el hombre, take a dip in the water. I reined you in once or twice and you wouldn’t listen. Be bold enough to face the storm”. Stop this emotional blackmail B.S. It does not work on me. Cut me some slack on the sob story.
I sat in his office pretty as you please, while we evaluated where he went wrong, how we can salvage the situation and come out stronger on the other end of the rainbow. By the end of the day, we had a solution for the national disaster he had created.
Wheew! All in a day’s work.
Glossary:
SSA – Sub Saharan Region
TG – Target Audience
El Hombre – The man
Disculpe – Excuse me/Pardon
La Mujere – The woman
Senor/Senora – Sir/Ma’am
Jefe Egoista – Egoistic Boss
Today's Naira 